The state government has decided to make it mandatory for multiplexes in the city to give Marathi films prime time slots. Under new guidelines, multiplexes stand to lose their licences if they treat Marathi cinema as secondary to other cinema.
The government’s move is likely to take the steam out of the Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) campaign to promote their Marathi agenda through the issue.
It has warned both the parties to desist from taking the law into their own hands. However, it stopped short of issuing any directives to the police in this regard.
“Hereafter, it will be mandatory for all 27 multiplexes in Mumbai to give Marathi cinema prime time slots. The permission for new multiplexes will be sanctioned only if they dedicate a separate screen entirely to Marathi cinema,” home minister RR Patil said.
The government held a meeting with producers and multiplex owners in the backdrop of the threat issued by the Shiv Sena to launch an agitation if multiplexes did not lower ticket rates for Marathi films.
“Statistics provided by the collector show that out of 27 multiplexes, only three have violated the norm of screening less than 112 shows. But even multiplexes which boast of 1,200 shows have multiplied the numbers, taking into account non-prime time shows (8 and 9am) where audience presence is negligible,” said Patil.
The three multiplexes which have faulted are: I-Max (Wadala), Fame Ad lab (Kandivali) and Inox (Nariman Point), However, the multiplex owners have dismissed these figures as false, arguing that they would fulfill the required quota by year end.
By spelling out the statistics, the government also exposed the hollow claims made by MNS chief Raj Thackeray that none of the multiplexes were screening Marathi cinema. On Sena’s ticket issue Patil said, “The revenue sharing formula has to be in place between cinema producers, distributors and multiplex owners.”
The multiplex owners argued that Marathi cinema in prime time was economically not viable as audience turn out was poor. On their part the Marathi cinema producers said, “The multiplexes gave less then 24 hours notice for screening the cinema thus depriving them of publicity.”
According to the home minister, there was a general complain that multiplexes managed to draw only 15% of the audience in the last three months, which made cinema a bad business.
The government has decided to address the complex problems by constituting a committee which will study the matter in detail and come out with recommendations. It wants to extend help to both cinema owners and producers as it believes it is a huge employment generating industry.
“The issue of Marathi cinema is not a commercial project. It is an integral part of Maharashtra’s cultural policy. If cinema is alive the artiste will flourish,” he said.
Cell to curb video piracy
Home minister RR Patil has directed joint commissioner of police (crime) Himanshu Roy to conduct massive raids across the city to check illegal video piracy which has threatened both Hindi and Marathi cinema. A separate cell will be set up in the police department to ensure films are not circulated in the open market before its release in cinema houses.
